Leaders gather in Paris as UK edges towards military action

Leaders and diplomats from more than 20 countries have gathered for a crisis meeting in Paris as the prospect of Britain joining military action against the Islamic State (Isis) jihadi group moves closer.

Opening the conference at the French foreign ministry, President François Hollande urged western and Arab countries to engage "clearly, loyally and strongly at the side of the Iraqi authorities". There was "no time to lose" in dealing with the threat from Isis. "Iraq's combat against terrorism is also ours," he said.

Monday's gathering came just a day after Isis released a video showing a hooded jihadi killing the British aid worker David Haines, 44, the third western hostage to be decapitated by the group in a month.

Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and his US and UK counterparts, John Kerry and Philip Hammond, were at the meeting.

As western diplomats reported that several Arab states had offered to join a US-led coalition carrying out air strikes on the insurgents, Cameron said the UK was "ready to take whatever steps are necessary" to deal with the threat of Isis.